ENGSO Youth hosts YouMind workshop on youth athletes' mental health
On Wednesday, 23 April 2025, ENGSO Youth Chair Ugnė Chmeliauskaitė and ENGSO Youth Young Delegate Gabija Ščerbickaitė hosted a national workshop focusing on the importance of mental health for young athletes, as part of the Erasmus+ funded YouMind project, in Vilnius, Lithuania.
The YouMind national workshop brought together young athletes aged between 18 and 35, who are currently training field hockey at the sports club Sostinės Žuvėdra in Vilnius. Although the participants are not part of the elite sporting scene, the workshop was held ahead of their participation in the EuroHockey Club Challenge III, scheduled to take place in Oslo, Norway, in June 2025.
Gabija Ščerbickaitė, ENGSO Youth Young Delegate and member of the Health Working Group, introduced the YouMind project and its objectives. YouMind is a small-scale Erasmus+ partnership coordinated by EUSA that works towards raising awareness about the importance of mental health in sport. Within the framework of the project the partners will develop different strategies with the aim to raise awareness on the prevention of mental health issues of young athletes.
The session also featured Aleksandras Baranovas, a sports trainer, psychologist, mental health advocate, and boxer, who shared his personal journey and spoke about mental health practices that young athletes could integrate into their everyday routines.
After Gabija’s presentation of the project, Mr Baranovas delivered several key messages: he emphasised that mental resilience must be trained in the same way as physical strength. He highlighted the crucial role of the coach, especially in challenging the misconception that only winning matters. Instead, coaches should strive to achieve the best results in a healthy and supportive environment.
Mr Baranovas encouraged athletes to support one another if they notice signs of stress or negative behaviour within the team. He also demonstrated a series of techniques for improving concentration, focus, and emotional regulation.
The workshop concluded with a reflection session, where members of Sostinės Žuvėdra took part in an open discussion, sharing their thoughts and experiences, fostering a supportive dialogue among club members.
For any further references we invite you to explore YouMind and Hooray project materials, which were produced to raise awareness about the importance of mental health in sports.
